Xi Jinping lays out blueprint to make China a global superpower by 2050
Xi affirmed the Communist Party's supremacy and heralded a 'new era of socialism with Chinese characteristics'
President Xi Jinping warned of severe challenges while laying out a road map to turn China into a leading global power by 2050, as he kicked off a twice-a-decade party gathering expected to cement his influence into the next decade.
Although his wide-ranging address made clear there were no plans for political reform, Xi said China’s development had entered a “new era”, using the phrase 36 times in a speech that ran nearly 3-1/2 hours.
“With decades of hard work, socialism with Chinese characteristics has crossed the threshold into a new era,” Xi said.
The twice-a-decade event, a weeklong, mostly closed-door conclave, will culminate in the selection of a new Politburo Standing Committee to rule China’s 1.4 billion people for the next five years, with Xi expected to consolidate his control and potentially retain power beyond 2022, when the next congress takes place.
The 64-year-old Xi, widely regarded as the most powerful Chinese leader since Mao Zedong, spoke to more than 2,000 delegates in Beijing’s cavernous, red-carpeted Great Hall of the People, including 91-year-old former president Jiang Zemin. Security was tight on a rainy, smoggy day in the capital.
As expected, the speech was heavy on aspiration and short on specific plans.
Xi also laid out an ambitious plan to make China a “great modern socialist country” in the following 30 years — part of what he has called the “Chinese dream.” By 2050, he said, the party would be near the goal of achieving a “beautiful China” with the rule of law, innovative companies, a clean environment, an expanding middle class, adequate public transportation and reduced disparities between urban and rural areas.
“Chinese people will enjoy greater happiness and well-being, and the Chinese nation will stand taller and firmer in the world,” Xi said of his vision for 2050.
Xi painted China’s governance system as a unique development model while hailing signature policies such as his Belt-and-Road infrastructure initiative and anti-corruption campaign, which has ensnared some 1 million officials since 2012 and sidelined many of his would-be rivals.
Xi affirmed the Communist Party’s supremacy and said that China shouldn’t copy the political systems of foreign nations, repeatedly emphasizing that the country had entered a “new era of socialism with Chinese characteristics.” He called for the rejection of the “Cold War mentality” in addressing global challenges, and said China would never seek global hegemony.
Xi said the Communist Party will strive to fully transform the People’s Liberation Army into one the world’s top militaries by 2050, and emphasized the need to modernize its combat capability.
“A military is built to fight,” he said.
Investors are watching to see whether Xi will push through tough reforms as the world’s second largest economy faces structural challenges over the next five years. At the same time, he’s seeking to boost China’s global clout with infrastructure spending while avoiding a conflict with U.S. President Donald Trump over North Korea.
“We have a fairly clear blueprint of Xi Jinping’s political economy, with incredibly robust, strengthened state-owned sector playing a large role in propping up growth,” said Jude Blanchette, engagement director at the Conference Board’s China Center.
“We’re moving into a sort of China Inc. 2.0, a real upgraded version that, sure, has markets and they’re going to play a really important role in this, but this is all within a bird-caged economy.”
While economic growth has surprised on the upside in recent quarters, inefficient state-owned enterprises and ballooning corporate debt pose threats to stability. Last year, China saw its slowest full-year growth in about a quarter century, and S&P Global Ratings last month cut China’s sovereign rating for the first time since 1999.
The Communist Party has been adept at changing course and finding ways for its citizens to make money, according to Fraser Howie, co-author of the books “Red Capitalism” and “Privatizing China.”
“The bargain certainly in the past 25 years plus has been: forget political freedoms, we will allow you to get rich,” Howie said. “Keeping power has been of absolute paramount importance to the party, and that’s the focus of what these meetings are about.”
Throughout the week, more than 2,000 delegates to 19th Party Congress will discuss and approve Xi’s report and revisions to the party charter. They will also appoint a new Central Committee, which will elect the party’s Politburo and its Standing Committee — China’s most powerful body — the day after the congress ends on Oct. 24.
Xi is set to emerge as one of the country’s top three leaders. He’ll be looking to secure a majority of allies on the new Standing Committee, which may potentially include possible successors who could rule until 2032.
With files from Reuters
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